Ahipara Luxury Travel

UN NUEVO COMIENZO

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +1200

UN NUEVO COMIENZO

Estimados amigos y colegas.

Saludos desde Nueva Zelanda!!!

Este es nuestro PRIMER NEWSLETTER en espanol para decirles HOLA y darles un resumen de mi nuevo comienzo. En la vida, siempre hay un nuevo comienzo, cada dia es un Nuevo dia.

Que ha sido lo NUEVO en mi vida??? He tenido la dicha de casarme el Sabado 22 de Marzo 2008 con un galan divino Neocelandes llamado Damian Johansen. Damian tambien trabaja en la Industria del Turismo y vive en un paraiso llamado Pauanui en el area de Coromandel que se encuentra unicamente 2hrs manejando desde Auckland.

Aqui les paso algunas fotos de nuestra BODA que fue sensacional!! Fue un dia perfecto. Me gustaria compartir estas fotos con ustedes no solo para compartir este momento tan especial en mi vida, sino tambien para que vean que Nueva Zelanda realmente es un paraiso.

Otro Nuevo comienzo es mi TRABAJO! Me da mucho gusto dejarles saber que estoy trabajando con una de las empresas mas reconocidas y prestigiosas en Nueva Zelanda llamada: AHIPARA LUXURY TRAVEL.

Me gustaria seguir trabajando con ustedes y seguir compartiendo nuevas experiencias e ideas junto con vuestros clientes y asi todos poder tener un nuevo recuerdo en nuestra vida por siempre.

Estamos en contacto. Les mando un grande abrazo.

Bonny Ibarrola-Johansen

AHIPARA LUXURY TRAVEL

Email: bonny@ahipara.com

Source: UN NUEVO COMIENZO

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Thu, 19 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +1200

Дайвинг

В Москве многие проявляют интерес к Новой Зеландии как к возможности заняться там дайвингом. Кажется, что многие дайверы ищут что-то новое, но не очень хорошо представляют, где это можно найти. «Бедные Рыцари» были описаны Жаком Кусто как одно из мест, входящих в десятку лучших мест мира, пригодных для дайвинга. Вы также можете погружаться возле действующего вулкана Белого Острова, нырнуть и исследовать затонувший корабль «Михаил Лермонтов», нырять в уникальном Фьордленде, там, где пресные воды перемежаются с солёной, а также попытаться самим поймать огромных лобстеров и приготовить их тут же. И всё это в стране, в которую легко попасть, и имеющую размеры Британии.

Для тех, кто не увлекается дайвингом, мы также разрабатываем маршруты, так, что любой член семьи сможет найти, чем заняться и в обеденное время, когда все соберутся за столом, уставшие и счастливые, каждому будет, о чём поведать другим за бокалом изысканного вина

Source: ???????

Hola Bonny!

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +1200

We are very pleased to announce that Bonny Ibarrola-Johansen has joined us to assist with developing Spanish and Portuguese-speaking markets. Bonny, the daughter of a renowned Mexican matador and New Zealand mother, brings a wealth of travel knowledge and cultural know-how. With 13 years at Thomas Cook and Landmark Travel behind her, Bonny is an invaluable addition to our South American push. We are delighted with having secured such a senior person who will be able to ensure we develop these emerging markets with intelligence and sensitivity.

Source: Hola Bonny!

Visit to Brazil

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +1200

Jean-Michel will be in Sao Paolo in the first week of August 2008. The visit is to support the launch of the outbound business of travel partner Matuete (www.matuete.com). Matuete has developed a particularly sophisticated niche for travelers both to and from Brazil, specialising, similarly to us, in super-luxury and super-experiences. We highly recommend Matuete to any of our clients traveling to or from Brazil.

Although this is very much a short visit to support this launch, Jean-Michel will be available to meet people or agencies interested in New Zealand on 6th August and possibly 7th August. At this stage we are looking at only visiting Sao Paolo and possibly Santiago with a follow-up through most of Latin America next year. If you are interested in meeting, please let us know.

Source: Visit to Brazil

Wild Food - Maori Style

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +1200

Somewhere between Taupo and Napier lies a 5,000 acre block of land. Access is either by helicopter or modified four-wheel drive vehicle. It is remote, very remote. It's also high, beautiful land, stretching from an elevated river plateau up to mountains still covered in native bush and trees. On the land are a number of wild foods, used by Maori for hundreds of years as well as some more recently introduced wild foods which also appeal to Maori.

A key aspect of Maori is adaptability. The early Polynesians arrived in a country totally unlike their native Pacific Islands. They adapted. The Europeans then arrived, and Maori adapted again. It is not commonly known that in the decades surrounding the establishment of a European population here in New Zealand, many successful small businesses were owned and operated by Maori.

So it is not surprising that Maori have adapted well to the introduction of various international foods. Wild pork, for one, has become a Maori wild food.

Add to the elements above an interesting man, taught to understand, use and love wild land and the wild animals and plants on that land by his father and his uncles. Then send that man overseas for 20 years to work as a chef in a number of countries. Then bring him and his love of food and people back to New Zealand, give him this beautiful piece of land which he remembers well from his childhood to work on, and you have something rather special.

Thomas Loughlin is that man, and our latest find in this country. He gives a lovely wild food and bush lore experience which can be coupled with hunting sika deer or wild pigs or fishing trout or eels. As usual we are working closely with Thomas to fully understand what can be done and help develop this experience in the right direction. We took a client there a month ago and he is already planning his return visit, from Europe.

Source: Wild Food - Maori Style

Wilkin River Magic

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +1300

Three short days ago I was privileged to spend some time with Wilkin River Jet, otherwise known as Inside New Zealand. This small company of multi-talented individuals specialises in taking people beyond the normal tourist routes and deep into what those of us lucky enough to live here consider the "real New Zealand". As people know, this is the sort of product we love, product we try hard to find and product we create ourselves. In this case, it's easy - already created and beautifully priced. The team has a number of jetboats, a helicopter and some talented guides. From company owner and helicopter legend Harvey Hutton and his charming wife Patsy through to a collection of skilled jetboat drivers, hunters, fishermen, heli-ski guides and even an expert abseiler. If you want to go behind the "scenes" of busy, fun but sometimes over-commercialised Queenstown please try these people. Anyone who truly enjoys the outdoors and meeting real people will really enjoy this. We strongly recommend the mixed helicopter/jetboat product, where you helicopter to a scenic location, do whatever it is you are doing there and jetboat out. We were fly fishing.

Source: Wilkin River Magic

Tangata at Treetops

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +1300

In March we were posed with a challenge. We had clients only in-country for a few days and had to put together a breathtaking encounter with Maori somewhere between Hamilton and Queenstown. The first thing we did was select a place with a strong feeling of wairua. This was the beautiful Bridal Veil waterfall on Treetops estate. A quick call to genial and accommodating manager Heiko Kaiser turned up the answer "of course". Another call to my old friend and ally from the North, Hone Mihaka, led me towards an equally charismatic and professional gentleman from the central North Island, Delanie Brown (pictured here second from the right in the excellent photo I took on the day - yes, this was the event, not a staged photoshoot). A road trip by Hone and myself to Taupo and Rotorua to meet Delanie and our man in Rotorua Ngahi o te ra Bidois resulted in agreement and a plan.

The result was a fantastically memorable day for our clients who received a three-warrior welcome along the path to the waterfall, the third warrior depositing a significant taonga - a named club of wood and greenstone - then some time together before sitting and enjoying a meal of modern Maori cuisine superbly cooked by Treetops' chef Bruce by the waterfall. It was such a good occasion we were all energised and bouncing around. This was true cultural tourism, properly prepared, unique, fresh, significant and not overcooked.

Thank you Delanie and Treetops.

Source: Tangata at Treetops

Another First

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +1300

Over the summer we added another milestone to our longstanding relationship with Eagles Nest. We were congratulated by the owners, Daniel and Sandra Biskind, on placing the first ever clients into their flagship villa, Rahimoana. This villa has justifiably won a number of design awards and remains an absolutely spectacular platform for that very special occasion. Ably managed by ex-Solitaire Lodge manager Callum Farnell, this villa complements stunning views with breathtaking architecture and avant-garde interior design. The materials and fittings are all the best that money and very high standards could find.

Source: Another First

Finally - A New Look!

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 00:00:00 +1300

We're at last very pleased to announce that our new website has gone live. This website reflects the changes and development we've had within our business over the last six years, and hopefully will be a little more user-friendly for everyone.

It also includes our new itinerary builder which has a private password access for clients/agents and public pages with some sample itineraries to be used as examples. There are three examples up there to start with and we will add more as we come out of our busy season over the next few weeks.

We have also integrated our newsletter into the site and imported our library of news articles for future reference and to allow people we don't already know to start understanding our style.

We have quite a few plans for further improvement over the next months and if anyone has any suggestions or requests, please ask.

Source: Finally - A New Look!

Moscow, March 2008

Tue, 04 Mar 2008 00:00:00 +1300

For all our Russian friends and contacts, this is a reminder that we will be exhibiting again at the invitation-only Luxury Travel Mart in Moscow on March 18th. We have a number of new initiatives to announce:

appointment of Russian market manager - Ivan Ivanov. Ivan has been working with us throughout the current season and is a highly qualified tourism business professional who set up and ran a successful tourism business in Irkutsk before moving to New Zealand. Ivan will be focussed on meeting the needs of our Russian partners and be continuing as a senior guide. If you would like to meet Jean-Michel and Ivan from March 17th to March 21st, please let us know. jean-michel@ahipara.com ivan@ahipara.com We have quite a few meetings already set up but also have some free slots
the Russian version of the website is live - just select the language you require with the tag at the bottom right hand of the web page
focus on meeting the needs of our Russian agents where we will now expand our product line-up to include 3 and 4 star adventure. This, true to our form, will not be simple off-the-shelf product, but some fresh, vibrant, new options

Source: Moscow, March 2008

Another New Addition

Tue, 04 Mar 2008 00:00:00 +1300

Those who know us know we like nice things! In keeping with this as well as in keeping with our position at the top of the luxury adventure tree in New Zealand, we have added a new member to our fleet - a late-model Range Rover HSE, seen pictured here outside our worldwide headquarters. As usual we have spared no expense in meeting the needs of our market, and have added this capability to our offering to ensure that people who are looking for the best in this country can find it.

We have plans to add an offroad-modified Discovery in due course. These vehicles will support our push into some parts of this country not supported by first class roading materials, and allow us to add yet more exclusive and exciting product.

Source: Another New Addition

Kahawai!

Tue, 04 Mar 2008 00:00:00 +1300

The Kahawai is a native New Zealand fish which resembles the mackerel. Renowned as a fighting fish, the kahawai is targeted by fishermen as well as spearfishermen. Recently we were asked by one of our clients, a gentleman from the US with no less than 58 years of fishing experience to put together a special day for him. While his wife was spending time with a local weaving expert, understanding something of the New Zealand complexities and intricacies in weaving, the husband went fishing. The target? You guessed it - kahawai. The difference? Light tackle fishing. And not just light tackle fishing - fly fishing. Fly fishing for a fighting fish like this in the open sea is rather special, and we found the right duo to make it happen. These gentlemen have been perfecting this form of fishing in the Bay of Islands for a number of years. The result? 30 good-sized kahawai landed, and the best day of fishing in our client's illustrious career. Another satisfied customer.

Source: Kahawai!

People Are Important Too

Mon, 21 Jan 2008 00:00:00 +1300

One of the things I really enjoy about my job is continuously meeting special, wonderful people. Not just our clients, who can be tremendously entertaining, but the special people we select to make their time in this country memorable.

Recently we planned and trialled another special day. This time it was the Southern Alps by helicopter - a special day for the ladies in a group - the men were fly fishing and tahr hunting. Our guides were both ladies. Lydia Bradey is the first lady and first New Zealander to make it to the summit of Everest without oxygen. Flying the machine was Alex Ewing, an experienced young pilot from a long-standing local family. Together they showcased their favourite, hidden parts of the Southern Alps and in the process delighted our clients.

This worked so well I have booked the team again for another client, and this time I am making sure I have the time to accompany them!

Source: People Are Important Too

Accommodation - More Thoughts

Sun, 20 Jan 2008 00:00:00 +1300

We have been long-term fans of private, single-party accommodation. Some clients enjoy the social aspects of lodges but the gradual decline in the attraction of communal dining gives a clue that perhaps there can be too much of a good thing?

Even some of the top lodges now offer multiple dining areas to allow holidaymakers (an important point here - a lot of people go on holiday to relax rather than socialise with strangers) some privacy and intimacy. We had a demanding client a few years ago who had a long list of requirements from their accommodation (no tin, only natural fabrics, only white tablecloths etc etc) - and one of the country's top lodges could not provide a white tablecloth or dining outside the communal dining room.

More and more of our clients are travelling in small groups of friends or family. They don't want to meet new people at lodges. They want to eat what they want, when they want, where they want. They want to dress how they want, get up when they want, drink as much as they want and go to bed when they want. I think most of us can identify with that.

So, we can see the rise of the private luxury home with top-grade understated service and a chef on-call. Glen Aros is one of those. There are a number of others around the country we are working on. Especially with a company like ours which keeps people engaged and busy during the day meeting interesting people and doing interesting things, so that by the time they get home, people are ready for some quiet time - private homes really work. Bearing in mind issues of changing quality in accommodation as mentioned above, having your own retinue of excellent staff insulates you from these fluctuations.

The final element - availability - has been addressed by the rise in real estate values and subsequent upgrading of properties which are now sitting there, unoccupied, in some lovely parts of the country - just looking for a professional team to fly in and breathe life into the place for a few days.

We predict the rise and rise of private luxury single-party homes in this country. It's going to be tough work trying them all out and making them work!!

Source: Accommodation - More Thoughts

Accommodation - More Than Meets the Eye

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 00:00:00 +1300

Some people think booking accommodation is easy. You just get a good rate and book it! I suppose in the same way, cooking is easy. Everyone can cook. And everyone can drive, too. I've been driven by plenty of poor drivers, eaten too much bad food and have stayed in some truly awful accommodation. So maybe it isn't that easy after all?

I've had some clients wax lyrical about one lodge, and then others, just a few weeks apart, tell me why it wasn't any good. I've had some clients tell me why their hosts are the best people in the world, and others tell me they were terrible. So, not everyone see the same thing.

For a number of years we have been asking our clients, agents, and personal assistants to tell us as much as possible about the people travelling so we can match them up with the correct accommodation. On our side, we keep tabs on the accommodation, understanding how changes of management can totally alter the feel of a place (for better or for worse), and in the best cases working with those places to shore up any weak points. (with our own hosts and chefs for example).

Our favourite accommodation providers are open to this process and we work together well and in 99% of cases have extremely happy clients. Some other accommodation providers operate a 'closed shop' where our influence is stopped at the front door. Sometimes they do very well. Sometimes they don't.

Others price themselves too high. Occasionally some price too low (see Silver Pine for one of the best bargains in the country at the moment).

We had a wonderful moment two weeks ago with a VIP group when we trialled a new estate - Glen Aros in Hawke's Bay. Our clients, who had tried some of the best established places in the country loved this newcomer. We were the first clients ever (I had visited the place a couple of months earlier for an inspection) and are already booking it again.

Operated in conjunction with top lodge Greenhill, and presented to the market with all the sophistication those professionals are famous for - I re-print below my feedback to the owner.

"A quick word of personal thanks from me for being allowed to use your gracious home for our clients. They absolutely loved the place. I think a combination of the tranquillity, elegance, attention to detail, original features, and excellent understated service worked very well. It is a special home with its own aura which offers travellers a haven within which to restore their energies. I am certainly keen on placing more clients there as I have seen how it worked on these ones, and these ones were very hard to please. The adults who stayed there (one couple had to leave early) rated Glen Aros as the top place they had been to on their trip. The hosting was excellent, the finishing touches were spot-on, and the support from Greenhill was first class

Welcome, Glen Aros, to the world of luxury tourism.

Source: Accommodation - More Than Meets the Eye